Dec 6th, The St. Nick's day! (some gathered truth behind Mr. Nicholas, the gift giver) - "The Father Christmas", or "Santa Claus"
I don't know about you, but I was and am still fascinated by the REAL St. Nicholas' (the Santa Claus) - story of generosity, goodness, kindness, and hope and trust that God continues to work in us and in our children through us! I also had to learn to undo a lot of things that did not make sense! So, we are in this learning together. Yes, we do not want to teach lies. When you speak the truth and tell the true facts, it is telling the real story against the lies and misrepresentations, and even commercialism that this character has been used to spread out. As I write this I want to make it clear that I am not advocating the 'in culture' Santa that charges money to take pictures with him, or is often seen drunk in some countries, or someone paid to perform and does not truly reflect the good man that St Nick was!
But we did tell our children when they were growing about an innocent fascination; the magic is a part that we all love to read, live, hope for, just like Disney or any animation characters, we all know the reality. If we teach the children the real story then the character does not become idol but seems a worker who worked for God! "At times putting a smile on a child's face is worth a great act of kindness" - as I heard it in a song. Our children who love the Lord Jesus have told us that they were never mistaken between Lord Jesus and Santa! They knew very well that Santa is NOT God! Thank God, they had the clear understanding of who God is and who Santa is. Be blessed as you read this and may you bless others this season!
I am quoting a very good explanation here by this gentleman who drives the truth home!
"The name Santa Claus comes from the Dutch Sinterklaas, which is a derivation of the Greek name Saint Nicholas. Saint Nicholas was a real person who lived in what is modern day Turkey between the years AD 270 and 343. Among the many stories and legends attributed to this holy man was his habit of giving gifts, especially leaving coins in peoples’ shoes. Anyone of Dutch heritage knows that shoes left out for Sinterklaas on the evening of December 5 will be found full of candy, toys, and coins the next morning.
Our culture has warped this into extremes of greed and consumption that Saint Nicholas would be horrified to have his name associated with. But as for the idea of giving gifts, Nicholas was just following a good example. That was what God did. A Christmas pop song by the Christian musician Randy Stonehill includes a line, “I know that if Saint Nicholas were here he would agree that Jesus was the greatest gift of all for you and me.” Let’s reclaim the real “Jolly Old Saint Nick.” -Jeff Munroe (Words of Hope Devotional)
Matthew 7:7-11 English Standard Version (ESV)
Ask, and It Will Be Given: 7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!"-
Hope and Confidence: So personally speaking, even as a parent I write that it was a joyous feeling for me to read the list that my young children presented at Christmas, few years ago and even now that they know the story. The confidence and hope that they have, need not be taken away. God, the great giver, encourages us to ask Him, and God can make anyone a messenger to bring a blessing in your life. That is the hope and trust we need to continue to instill. The world needs hope.
I must say that we must, repeat must teach our children NOT to pray to Santa or to make a list for Santa but to pray to the Gracious God, who uses people in our lives to bless us. These days many want to exclude prayers and God all together, because we live a world that believes in 'self made' stuff, would it not be ok to teach children, that there is God up there and He cares for you, your needs and is willing to give you, whatever you need!
Teaching Generosity: We also encourage them to become givers. Jesus said in John's gospel that, "We will always have poor among us." So, instead of being so skeptical, we can humble and be messengers of God."Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." Luke6:38 NIV
When we display goodness of God, God remains at the center and gets glorified and His power working through us and in us is seen, whether we are ordinary being or great givers. Our children have never thought of Santa as GOD, but a messenger of God, because that is what we taught them.
Even Santa bows down to worship Jesus, the true Gift giver, and the Gift himself from Heaven's all-gracious King!
May we not get too carried away in either side though, but live humble lives and display God's goodness as did St. Nick did!
A very clear teaching on this subject and a very good resource is in this article that I read and am pasting it here, please take time to read: https://answersingenesis.org/jesus-christ/birth/wintertime-worship-santa-claus-or-jesus-christ/
Here is our daughter, Narita Sharma, speaking on: Benefits of Christian Education on her graduation celebration day on July 1st 2012. We thank God for allowing us to home school our daughters on Accelerated Christian Education system, that is profoundly Biblical, a highly academic and structured program instilling not only goodness but godliness in the lives of our children so they are able to live each day in the good, acceptable and perfect will of our Heavenly Father and also are ready to face each tomorrow with the wisdom, strength and courage of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Isaiah 54:13 says: "And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD: and great shall be the peace of thy children." I have continued to claim this verse for our children.
Be blessed as you hear it. This video and speech is copyrighted - Please note that prior permission from the author must be obtained prior to using any part of this speech in any form.
Because of the poor recording quality, below is a word for word:
Prarthna Narita Sharma’s High School graduation Day
speech on:
Benefits of Christian Education – July 1st, 2012
at Swahili Chapel, Chicago: (10 minutes)
Bwana Asifiwe! (In
Swahili) Praise the LORD. Thank you for coming for
celebrating my graduation with me. I’m very privileged to stand before you and
I am glad that God has enabled me - just to share with you—I’ll be sharing with
you, the benefits of a Christian education - found on a Christian foundation.
And I’ll only be a few minutes—I know we’re also hungry for the food; it looks
really nice. I have two passages that I’ll be reading that will pertain to this
speech.
The first is Matthew 7:24-25 King James Version (KJV) “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and
doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a
rock:”And the
rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that
house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.”
And
the second passage is Proverbs 22:6 “Train up a child in the way he should go:
and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
Now,
there are five things that I have learned very much from having a Christian
education. I was home-schooled from my mom.
1.
And the first thing is the fear of the Lord.
Can we all say that together? (Congregation’s
response) : “The Fear of the Lord.”
And
the fear of the Lord, Proverbs22:4 say: “By humilityandthe
fear of the LORDareriches,
and honour, and life.”
Why this is so
important? Because God is at the center of our life, as opposed to some secular
education, where we are the center of our life or who our friends are - are at
the center of our lives. Basically, Humanism is at the center. By having a fear
of the Lord, we are taught by the Lord, making him—(centre of our lives) that
we’re in His hands. And we are taught by the Lord, which will bring, as it
says, riches, and honor, and life, which true riches that I’ll define later.
2. The second
thing that I had is our Identity in Christ.
Can we say that
together? (Congregation responds): “Our Identity in Christ”
So the first thing
was the fear of the Lord and the second thing is our identity in Christ.
So many times we have
examples of identity crises today because people today—what do they find their
identity in? In clothes, in what you wear, you’re what kind of car you drive,
you’re what kind of house you live in, and you’re - what kind of money you
earn, what kind of degree you get…. But our identity as Christians as believers
in Christ… is-- it’s in Christ- so it’s not about using God for ourselves - rather,
it’s being used by God and for God.
In Galatians 2: 20
it says, “I am crucified with Christ. It is no longer I that live, but Christ
that lives in me. The life that I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son
of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” This [something] these two first
points, why they’re so crucial in Christian education, is that they put God
first. There are so many artists and actors, and you see so many of them who,
they are first, their own [life] is first, and of course, that’s a pitfall
because they’re like the man who built his house on the sand. IT will wither
away in the storm.
3. The third
thing that I’ve learnt is - the 60 character traits of Christ. You can search
them - you can look them up on Google if you want. They’re things like honesty,
truthfulness, diligence, trust, love, and faith. The books that we have in our
Christian Education are called PACES and they have two little characters, a boy
and a girl, who we grew up with, so to say. And all those Paces, they have 60
characteristics individually in all of them. It is really helpful to children.
The ones that I remember were very self-sacrificing such as doing something for
someone else, even though you’d like to do something yourself - giving that up;and Thriftiness; That if you don’t have
something, or if it’s too expensive - use what God has given you at that time.
The big thing
about this is that in secular education, they teach you that you don’t have to
go by character or principles; you have to go by, “Desperate times call for
desperate measures.” If bad things happen, you have to do what you can. But the
Bible teaches, and Christian education founded on the Bible teaches, that there
is no other option but obeying God. To use an example of Daniel and his friends:
They were about to be burned to death for not bowing down to idols: because the
Bible has the first commandment, “You shall not have any other gods before me,”
they didn’t have any other option. They would either be delivered by God in the
furnace or they would die in the furnace a martyr’s death - to the glory of
God.
4. The fourth
thing that I have learned is -- learn to love of memorization of the Bible.
Our PACEs that we had - each of them had about 12 PACES and there are 5
subjects, so each of them had a verse for all these years. Additionally, my mom
would also have us (memorize)—we’d sit down every morning and read chapters or
books. It’s not about competition that you memorize big chapters of the Bible
or something. It’s about getting the Bible rooted in your heart.
This morning a
pastor at our church, he had said that when the devil tempted Jesus in the
desert, Jesus did not - He didn’t bring a Bible from His pocket and start
flipping through the pages. “Let me find a verse I have to tell you!” No! What
did He do? He recited it from His mind. It was [only/truly/really] because He
loved the Bible so much, that he kept it in His heart. And similarly, we
should, too.
5. And,
finally, what I have learned is getting true success. The world’s
definition of success is defined by how rich are you? What kind of degree did you get in school? What kind of school are you going to? Or, like in my situation
as a student, it would be “How many A’s do you have?” which is not necessarily
a bad thing, but with God - definition of true success is in Proverbs. (Proverbs
8:10-12) It says, “Receive my instructions and not silver, knowledge rather
than choice gold. For wisdom is better than rubies, and all the things that
[make you desire?] are not even compared to it.”
So, while the
world goes for things like silver and gold and rubies and money, and you know,
like, jewels, God instructs us to go for things like wisdom, and to follow His
words and to follow Him. The definition of wisdom is described as: We look at -
we can look at ourselves and say ‘If Jesus was living as myself - as Narita
Sharma, what would He do with my limitations, abilities, and talents? If Jesus
was living as you, what would He do? If Jesus was living as you, what would He
do? And in thinking that, we find – that- What Would Jesus Do, and find that in
our life by following Him, by making choices that you know He would make.
So it comes to
this: what is our foundation? Is it temporary things, such as money, or fame,
or goods, (for) which we will have the same consequences like the man who built
his house on the sand? Or is our foundation on Christ? A theologian by the name
of Dietrich Bonheoffer - he has a quote that goes along the lines of “When you
are a believer in Christ, you are--it’s a death to yourself.” He says, “I have
been crucified with Christ” You are crucifying your old self onto the cross and
He gives you His new self and the Holy Spirit. There is a song that says, “All
of my ambitions, hopes, and plans, I surrender these into your hands” – into
God’s hands. Right now, in my life, I can say that I don’t know where God is
going to take me. He has not – He’s chosen not to reveal that to me. In His
time, he will reveal to me. But the main thing is that all of them are in His
hands. And the key word is obedience. Whatever He tells me to do, wherever He tells me to go, it will be in obedience to Him. That is the Christian life:
building your foundation on Christ. And I’d just want to invite anybody who does
not know Jesus as their personal Savior, if you would take this time to receive
His invitation and accept Him in your heart; will you make the choice to build
your foundation on the sand, which will wither away when the storm comes, or on
Christ? Another difference that comes between Christian education and secular
education is: If you’re doing a math test, and you forget the problem, in
secular education, it’s “Oh my gosh, I forgot the problem! Let me see if he
(the person sitting next to you) has the answer, I can write that down.” or you
can look it up on Google. But when you’re a Christian, you bow your head and
say in true humility, “God, I don’t know the answer’ and later on in life He
carries you through tough trials that you may have to face and you’ll say,
“God, I can not go through this. Give me your strength so that I can go through
this. And thank-you that you’re able to be with me through this.” And so you
make the choice for what foundation you have built. If you have already built
your foundation on the Rock, whatever time you’re in, whether it’s a joyous
time where God has really blessed you or where you’re in a trial where God’s
refining you, you can trust that you are on the Rock and come rain, come stormy
days, come sunny days, or cloudy days, you are on the Rock and that will not
fail.
My thoughts on 17th June, 2012: Father’s Day: on
my dear Uncle John (John-mama) (Mama means 'maternal uncle' - mother's brother' in Indian language)
God is the best example of the perfect father - a loving,
nurturing, and admonishing Father; he never abandons his children. What is that
dads can learn on a day like Fathers’ Day?
Every child needs Dad around; it is just not enough to bring
the child into the world. The phone call once a year or in a while is not enough. The
visit here and there and toys every now and then is not enough. Children are
given on a loan to us and we need to be careful to service the loans. We will
stand before a Holy GOD one day who will demand an answer from all that He has
placed in our hands, including raising our children.
Hearts cry out when we see many children and many homes that
are fatherless these days and what is shocking is that number is on the rise. Kids
are just encouraged to adapt to a “new normal” that they did not ask for. Both
parents need to commit to working it out and stick together to give security,
future, and a home.
Together with my siblings, I happened to be a child who has
lived a few years away from our parents and therefore, know the value of home,
security and protection! I remember, as a small child, thinking and seeing my Dad as a
giant daddy, someone who stood by me to protect me and hug me, to guide and
lead me. For a number of years of my childhood, Daddy and Mommie both were away in
Africa and for sometime we were raised by a dear Uncle John (John-mama) back
home in India!
Uncle John too was like a lion yet soft hearted and loving. If I categorize my Dad as a lion, John-mama would be a tiger. I do not ever
remember him showing any partiality between his own children and us; he and his dear loving wife both treated all of us alike. My two siblings and I were raised by him and
his dear wife for a few years of our lives.
I have good memories of Uncle John (John-mama) providing
security, guidance, and protection to us. He would not leave us alone to
ourselves or to the neighbors. We feared Uncle John out of good reverence. He
was a civil servant working as an Income Tax officer and also enjoyed driving and hunting; he had cars that we traveled in (which was,
in those days, a rare commodity); he was a hard working man who provided well for his
family and was a great investor. He served the community well and was well respected by all both inside and outside the church. Every Christmas and Easter time he would go
hunting and bring a great game and cook and feed us. I was the youngest of all
the children so he would always joke with me and treat me extra kindly. After
dinner, he would play simple games with us outside in the open yard in wonderful weather and he made us laugh. There was strict discipline in his
household that I appreciated much. At his house, reading the Bible and praying at
night together as a family before bedtime was mandatory. He also taught us the value of Fasting. He believed in discipline and ascertained that
we attended church weekly. One of the remarkable set traditions of his household was a consistent, peculiar parting greeting: Anyone who stepped out of the house said, "Isu ni Jai" (meaning "Praise be to Jesus" - in Gujarati.) Almost similar to saying, "Ok, bye, God bless" and so no one stepped out of home before saying "Isu ni Jai." Those are beautiful memories.
I recall a hilarious incident: During one of those large family feasts in my childhood, I (the tiny, tiny, little one) was seated at the far end of the row; the food was being served by my dad, while the Grace before meal time was prayed by my Uncle John at that time, so the food serving stopped in the middle. As soon as he finished saying 'Amen', I jumped right in to continue praying loudly, "And Lord Jesus, the Okra vegetable dish has not yet reached me, please help hasten it to reach me as soon as possible. Amen." and everyone burst into roars of laughter. (hey, Okra was and is still my favorite dish, I still remember thinking in my little mind that it won't reach me and that I will be forgotten! So the best thing was to plead to the Lord Jesus - the higher authority! hahahaha) (smile)
Uncle John was the only brother my mom had; he was younger than my mom just by a year and a half or so. Both my mom and
he loved each other as the only siblings they were. He respectfully addressed my mom as "motiben" (literally, "elder sister.") I also remember he and my Dad hugging and crying like David and Jonathan before Dad left for Africa. My mom and uncle both were raised by a widowed
mom; when he was barely born, his dad passed away. So, a lovely nurse by
profession, my grandmother dedicated her life to raising both her kids alone
with God’s help. I can say that she raised a fine son and a hardworking man of
principles and one who loved Jesus. My mom used to tell us that John-mama was very hard working even as a youth and learnt driving at a young age and would go to the big, huge city of Mumbai on work prior to his full time job. I am thankful to God for John-mama. I am thankful that God softened his heart
to provide for us the security, protection and love we needed when our own
parents were away from us due to their own duties out side the country.
One thing I am personally grateful for is his parental
wisdom over my life: In my teen years before I made a huge mess, John-mama sensed the urgency
of the matter and before things got out of hand, he arranged for me to travel
to and be with my Mom and Dad in Africa. I am grateful to him and his family for that
superb decision that they made on my behalf. That decision changed my life
totally and entirely and made me closer to God more than ever and made me a person of worth. As a young woman, I learnt the biblical principle and obedience to stay pure till I got married
and saved myself for Bharat, my husband. I learnt to value Bible reading,
praying, and family togetherness. I learnt that caring relatives pick up God-given roles and assume parental authority with love and genuine
care without expecting anything in return. When Dad passed away in Nairobi, Kenya, in 1984, Uncle John was thousands of miles away in India; after the funeral ceremonies and mourning days were over, he suggested to my mom that I, being the youngest in the family now, need to marry and settle down. I really appreciated his concern for me even at that time when Dad was gone; Uncle John, sitting far away, still felt responsible for me and wished for my good. When he learnt that I am waiting on God and His timings, he did not pressurize me but let me wait. When God sent Bharat in my life, both John-mama and Shanta-mami (my aunt) approved of him and blessed us.
God used Uncle John in my life in a
great way. This blog post page is dedicated to my dear uncle John (John
Mama), who is close to my heart and who stepped in to play a fatherly role to me and my siblings
while Dad was away.
Uncle John went to be with the Lord few years back but I
know I will see him in heaven at the feet of Jesus! Jesus, thank you for kind
uncle like Johnmama who took us (his sister’s kids) and treated them as his own to guide, protect and care for, but mostly for teaching the fear of God, the importance of daily Bible reading as a family, praying and honoring Christ in our lives!
It is 2012 Mothers Day Eve. Tomorrow the Mothers' Day will be celebrated - largely in USA. As I am treated to a delicious yummy tasting Spicy Jambalaya Rice made by my dear husband Bharat, as a special treat for me for this evening, i am relishing each grain as I write this.
Well, what am i thinking? God choosing Bharat to make me a mother to our two precious girls. This year our sweet Narita (Prarthna) "our prayer" graduates from our own home school with Honors diploma certificate. She has been a straight A student, a recipient of solid many years' literature achievement awards and an outstanding character award as well. When it comes to obedience we can count on her. She does it from her heart and so does her sister as well.
They remind me so much of the young Timothy to whom Paul wrong letters to reminding him of how his mother and grand mother had taught scriptures from his infancy. This is what God has enabled me to with my girls. Along with Timothy, I also read in the Bible of how young Joash was raised by his dear aunt, under ground until he became a king. My favourite is Elizabeth, John the Baptist's mother who raised a fine son, who chose to live in the desert, and honored Christ. While some people in the world put their kids in front, at times God calls us to shield our children, nurture them, and teach them what He puts on our hearts. We must be obedient to do His bidding!
10years ago both our girls prayed, hoped and then requested me to resign from my air travel job because they had already short listed and employed me full time to be their home schooling mom! God was at work thru Stuti the younger one, on being adamant that I must resign and home school them personally.
Just only a few days before I realized while Stuti for sometime will still be taught by me, that this is Narita's last quarter to be my high school senior student, even though she chooses to continue to stay home with us, I had tears and cried. It has been a life time- one of a kind and a special honorable experience that I am grateful for! It is a joy and honor to be their teacher mommie, mentor and a Biblical counselor. Praying, reading and memorizing Bible, Studying, learning, playing, driving, walking, talking, discussing, cooking, knitting, cleaning, snow shoveling, landscaping, leaves raking, and enjoying shopping as well field trips, facing hardships crying, encouraging, and hoping together; and being resourceful, we have been so part of each others' lives. I enjoy being with them and they enjoy being with us 24/7. This has been revolutionary for us as we come from a career minded world where women are recognized sadly and only by their out-of-home- profession; unfortunately, they do not consider that parenting, mothering and mentoring is a sacred call on our lives from the Creator Himself! and for us home schooling moms it is an added advantage to be a positive influence in their lives.
Additionally it has been an equal pleasure to learn from them as well. I remember earlier when on the express highways, girls would look at a sign of a speed limit and then look at the speedometer and ask what do those numbers mean, and when I would explain, they would gently and softly tell me that i might be over speeding. (Smile) see how God teaches us thru them? another high light was every time they find something that is not theirs, be it an extra toy at Micky D's restaurant or a coin found in the toy machine, they would responsibly and joyfully go and give it back stating it is not theirs. It was a thankful moment when those managers would so appreciate their truthfulness and honesty, and our upbringing. When someone bullied them, they bowed down and prayed for the bully. Those are special moments that comes only when Jesus rules the hearts.
When they were little girls, they used to request me to take them in our car and drive them to buy gifts for me and Bharat for birthdays, Christmas and other holidays like Mother's Day and Father's Day, and today, as they drive, as we sit in the car! its a joyful and tearful moment both, bittersweet!
It is a blessing when your children look upto you, know your strengths and weaknesses as you do theirs, and honor you, learn from you and want to continue to revere you! to Jesus alone be the glory for that!
As a mother I wish my 'dream-come-true-girl', will do well in any discipline and classes she chooses to take for further studies. I know that her eyes are on Lord Jesus and His ears are towards her. She rests knowing that God has a plan for her life and HE will lead her all the way to choose that which is good; all she has to do is trust and obey. In that Bharat and I rejoice that she is walking close with Jesus; my prayers as a mother has always been that my daughters will continue to walk with JESUS all the days of their lives and honor Him in all their beings, thinking, sayings and doings!
Thank you Narita, my dream, and Stuti, my praise, for loving me, appreciating my cooking, honoring me and employing me full time to be your home schooling mom and learning from me! I love my job and vocation! I thank God for giving me this privilege raise you up.I also thank God for Bharat for supporting and co-parenting with me.
In closing, we thank God for Bharat's strong, caring and very concerned mom who lives in India, and my late mom, strong, nursing and courageous who lives in paradise now; I also thank God for my sister, and his sister and all our relatives and dear friends, all those who honor motherhood and continue to be good moms!
As i read about Palm Sunday and Holy week, i think about how someone wrote that "people hung on Jesus' words, and in few days, Jesus was hung on the cross on people's words." (of course we know it was God's divine will to have Jesus crushed so that he can pay the penalty for our sins but it was the people who shouted Hosanna on Palm Sunday, also shouted, 'Crucify Him' on Good Friday!
"Gethsemane garden is a wine press"...said Dr. Erwin Lutzer,.. ouch! and that really drove a point home. Wine press that crushes grapes so wine comes out to gladden us...Jesus was crushed and His holy blood that was shed cleanses us pure and makes us clean. i like what Max Lucado wrote also, "Jesus knows what it means to beg God to answer prayers and yet submit to His will." Jesus chose to humble, Philippians 2:13 says of Jesus, "Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped," i like that 'grasped' part- i do not think we fully comprehend what it means to grasp the humility of Jesus! wrote Edwardo shilito: "The other gods were strong; but Thou wast weak; They rode, but Thou didst stumble to a throne; But to our wounds only God's wounds can speak, And not a god has wounds, but Thou alone."
Luke9:31 "As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem." (NIV) Even Jesus' disciple Peter did not want Jesus to be tortured or killed, but Jesus was resolute, intentional, determined. He said, "No one takes it (my life) from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father." John10:18. Pilate had no power on him, even though he said, don't you know, i have the power to crucify you and to let you go free. Jesus replied, Jesus answered, "You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above...." (john 19:11) so wait it minute, Pilate! its not 'Jesus before Pilate' in reality it was 'Pilate before Jesus' and poor Pilate, he missed by inches, he was afraid to crucify Jesus and yet, when he asked Jesus, "what is truth?" without hearing the answer, Pilate walked out. like Dr. Lutzer says, 'Pilate if only you had waited to hear the truth, to hear from the one who proclaimed to be " theTRUTH, the way, and the life"!
Luke12: 37 "Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them."(KJV)
this blows my mind away! i can try and fathom Jesus washing Disciples' feet but this future event of Jesus dressing himself to serve and wait on his saints, those who have been washed in his blood! this knocks me out. i barely understand, when i read! However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him"--1 Corinthians:9 (NIV) i cry in gratitude to God.
I read in a devotional book, called Today, "Maundy Thursday - The name comes from the Latin word “mandatum,” meaning “command.” On this night Jesus gave his disciples the “new command” to love one another as servants." wait a minute, i need to remind myself, like my biblical mentor kept pressing me on 2 years back, "Kalpna, we do not have a 'suggestion' to love others, we are commanded to love..its a command and commands are to be obeyed!" yes, we need to ask any military person what it means to disobey commands! yet this is a command to love...Lord teach us to love one another.
few years ago, i also used to think of love as a fairy tale and not really understand fully. Until i see the Cross of Jesus and submit myself to Him. He allowed a man to invade my life, who became my husband, over 2decades ago and still is! Bharat tried to show me what love was like; i kept rejecting love many times. Both Bharat and i came to realize, ours was a human love, bound to fail, bound to not last, until the Hero of Love, Jesus himself fills us with His divine love - to teach us to one another, and after 25yrs, we are now learning to practice 'Agape', the self-less loving one another. Then God put two beautiful daughters into our laps, and wow! what an example of love we learnt and continue to learn. "out of the mouth of the babes and nursing infants..." is what Bharat and i have experienced in our journey together. Even though we home school them, they teach us so much, God's tools are great. i am still learning to love these precious ones whom God has given me as per His divine rules.
Good Friday: it is said, "It was not the nails that held Jesus to the cross, it was His love for you and me. "
or as one of the songs says, "He could have called ten thousands angels to destroy the world and set him free, but he died alone for you and me" "Cross is LOVE at its best"
Saturday is quiet and day of rest - it is Sabbath; some people say Jesus rested on Sabbath but i say Jesus also did good work on Sabbath. So, it was not on that reason that he did not rise, but because of the divine will - that He was to be in the belly of the earth for 3 days; women were preparing spices to go and visit his tomb! and lo and behold what did they encounter!
Sunday: Resurrection day: since i have come to read some stuff about the name "Easter", i do not like to call this day "Easter", i like to call Resurrection Sunday. call it, spiritually or Biblically correct, yes, i prefer to be Biblically correct and call it a Resurrection Sunday. Jesus rose from the dead and its not about Easter bunnies or Easter eggs, this day is about JESUS and HIS power to rise from the dead. HE IS RISEN!!!!!!!!!
Jesus resurrects lives even today, He resurrects dead marriages, families and relationships, dead things, trees, jobs, businesses, living matters and if need be nonliving matters too, for His glory and our good! ask many, read and find that some of us are the living testimonies of that resurrection. I dare you to know this Jesus! HE is risen and "because He lives, we can face tomorrow".
His blood is able to cleanse any sinner, His grace is able to sustain us and protect us from falling and to present us faultless, His love is able to make a difference in the lives of people and His resurrection gives us hope that there is tomorrow, there is eternity, there is life after death, there is GOD that we will face one day. John11:25 says "Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies;"
Happy Resurrection Sunday! Jesus conquered death! He is alive!
Dare to believe in the ONE who has conquered death and is living and is loving...yes, the Lord Jesus Christ!
My husband is touched and moved by this video for quite a few months now and so are we, all four of us would like you to be blessed watching this superb video of Hero by the group called 'Abandon' - you just cannot ignore this divine human!
from kalpna sharma and family (Bharat, narita and Stuti)
As i hear and read about the oppression, in the centuries that are gone and even today, all the while focusing on God's word and Christ, i sense in my spirit that in the state of oppression, one can either be bitter or be better. Being bitter spills out so badly that others get affected along with us and produces little bitterness here and there. We may be blessed to hear God correct us thru someone or something that that we need to rethink.
As we rethink, i believe that in the difficult circumstances the best way to respond is to look up to God, is to trust Him, and never give up, but also appreciate the sustaining power of the One who is not only a spectator in our difficult circumstances but who has our backs, the One who sees our sorrows, tears and oppression and allows it to produce in us what only 'this difficult circumstance' can produce, the beauty of patience, the beauty of wisdom, the beauty of Christ. says, 1 peter 2: 21 onwards says : "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: 22Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: 23Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: 24Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. 25For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.
We are to thank God, worship, and praise Him as we look forward to our better tomorrow. I see this response of many who were oppressed and were under difficult situations and they produced the best hymns, wrote things to encourage and show the sustaining grace and control of the ultimate good GOD, who is just, loving and good. Their legacy lives on, and we will do well when we follow their examples.
remember - God allows us to be tempted not that we feel helpless and yield to it but that for the purpose that we resist it.. through Him, by crying out to Him for His help! - Kalpana c Sharma
I have often heard many preachers preach on this event:
Mark's gospel says in chapter 1: 9And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan.
10And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him:
11And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
12And immediately the spirit driveth him into the wilderness.
13And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him.
As i read again and again, i see that no sooner God had affirmed that Jesus IS THE beloved Son...than satan tried to tempt him saying, prove it...'if' you are the son of God, do this...and i love the way Jesus so amazingly answers.
1st of all, as someone has said, the minute we have high spiritual experiences, satan tries to tempt us and God allows us to be tempted so we can be ready for higher challenges. We do not need to give in to temptation. We can depend on God's word.
Mathew records and so does Luke of the deals that satan was trying to strike with Jesus.
Matthew 4: 1Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered.
3And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
you see, how after God had affirmed that Jesus was the beloved Son, satan is trying to cause Jesus to doubt that...just the same trick he played with Eve in the garden of Eden that "Did God really say..." and sadly Eve got into a wrong argument with satan. Jesus did not even bother go into the game," 'yes, i am', no you are not, yes, i am...type.."
I see satan trying to meet the human legitimate need of hunger that Jesus had and yet, Jesus not only chose to not get into the 'son-ship argument but Jesus even eradicated the legitimate hunger need - 40 days of fasting was a legitimate need.
But Jesus answer shows that satan is not really only for the argument, he is there to make us disobey God. as the scripture says, 4But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
Jesus who fasted for 40 days made it clear that even then, we dont live by bread alone, but by God's word that is sufficient for us. Jesus' ego is not even touched, he saw what devil was trying to incite him to do! if only we can also be that vigilant!!!!
now wait a minute, devil is not yet done. read it:
5Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
again, he is using the same card, 'if'...if you are the Son of God....lets have fun...let us put on a show...but Jesus is not buying into that game that would cause him to disobey or test God!
7Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
you would think devil now would give up. but no!
8Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 9And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
boy! he has the nerve to ask the Maker of the heaven and earth, the one in whom all things hold together to worship him???
like someone has said, devil did not own anything to give to Jesus, but also, he is the god of this world, and God in His Sovereignty has given satan the things for a time. Jesus didn't want to listen to satan and Jesus didn't go satan's way either...
ultimately devil wanted Jesus to avoid CROSS!!!!! yes, he did not seem to want Jesus to be our sacrificial lamb, because we would be saved..so, now he tries to stop people from becoming believers in Christ. Remember, satan's motive is to make us doubt God and eventually disobey God so he can have an upper hand in our lives...
10Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. 11Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him. (by the way, Luke puts it that satan left him for a more opportune time) that means, satan the defeated foe does not leave us alone, he is like a roaring lion, seeking to whom he may devour as 1peter 5 says...8Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
Dr. Erwin Lutzer says that, "Satan may be a roaring lion but remember that he has been declawed"
Let us stand firm in our faith, in our good God's good plans for our lives, and let us not give into temptations. We can use the scriptures that we have been given.
Be strong and be encouraged,
Kalpana Christian Sharma,
The scriptures are taken from KJV.
Copyrights reserved @ Kalpana Christian Sharma (Mrs.)
Bwana Asifiwe! (In
Swahili) Praise the LORD. Thank you for coming 